Insurance
by editor frog
Summary: Some payments are harder than others...


**This is about how my last visit went...without the 'fraud' part. Hope you enjoy.**

**Disclaimer: Criminal Minds is not mine, but Chase Davis is.**

* * *

"I'm sorry, doctor, but the check was sent back 'returned.'"

Reid had the urge to just scream, though he was also sure the room could stand _not _to have its windows broken through sonic radiation from the sound of his voice.

"Look," he tried yet again to explain to the receptionist, who looked like a 17-year old that might be better suited for a nail salon than an insurance office. "I changed banks last month, and I gave you people _two_ voided checks! The money's in the account, so I'll ask again—why aren't you taking it out to pay my bill?"

"Doctor," the receptionist said, her voice clearly ready for an argument, "you didn't reconcile the payment from last month. Your account is suspended until you make the payment, and _then_ we can see about that automatic payment setup. Now, your bill from last month was 210.83. Would you like to pay that amount now?"

_What I would 'like' to do is toss you into an interrogation room so Hotch or Morgan can get to the bottom of this and let Garcia run rampant on your system,_ Reid thought. Heaving an exasperated sigh, he pulled out his checkbook.

"Hey there."

Reid spun on his heel to find a familiar—and right now, very welcome—face behind him. "What are you doing here?" he asked.

"Well, the guy down in Campbell is on vacation for two weeks, and I have to make my payment," Chase Davis said, smiling. "There a problem?"

Reid appraised her of his plight. "I switched banks, like you said…"

"Better that than the place robbing you blind."

"Yeah. They ever get the money back?"

"Kyle's about to call Garcia to ask her if she wants to hack some banks in the Caymans and the Netherlands Antilles."

"Wow."

"Dr. Reid?" the receptionist asked, raising her voice loud enough for the other five people in the office to hear her.

Reid rolled his eyes, but tried to keep his professionalism in check. He returned to his check, his spindly handwriting gracing the face of the bank note.

"Here," Chase said, swiping the document from his hands. Turning to the pesky receptionist, she smiled sweetly. "Your boss around?"

"Ma'am, I don't see how…"

"Well, it's like this. I just saved your boss from having his business stolen from underneath him by some very clever people, and he is, shall we say, _very_ grateful. So grateful, in fact, that he just might decide to hire a new receptionist…" Chase let the sentence trail off.

"Are you threatening me, ma'am? 'Cause I'm just following policy…"

"No. No no no no no." Chase said. "_Threatening _you would be something like letting Dr. Reid here take you, in handcuffs, down to his office at Quantico for a lengthy chat. _Threatening_ you would be allowing some friends of ours to have some fun with your personal accounts and other online forays. _Threatening_ you would be to tell you that the last time I qualified on a range, I didn't miss a shot. Impressed the hell out of the SWAT guys, I gotta say."

The receptionist's lips pursed in a frown while she called into a rear office. "Mr. Collins will be out in a second," she said. "May I tell him who's waiting?"

"Chase Davis," the young woman said sweetly.

A second later a tall, thin, balding man was greeting Chase as if she'd saved his firstborn child. "Jake, this is Dr. Spencer Reid, a friend of mine," Chase began. "He's been having some trouble restarting an automatic payment…"

"Trouble?" Mr. Collins asked.

"I had to switch banks about a month ago," Reid began, telling his story for the third time that day. Collins nodded his head, and Reid could tell the man was in fact genuinely interested in what he had to say, rather than merely being polite.

"I know about that bank," Mr. Collins explained. "I had to switch all my accounts as well—personal _and _business. What a nightmare…"

"Tell me about it. But see, the thing is, your system isn't taking the money out of my new account. It's there, it's just not transferring."

"Let's see…" Mr. Collins said, pulling up Reid's account on his personal computer in his office. Both Reid and Chase took a seat as the information loaded. "Hmm. Seems here things are in order…" he said, swinging the monitor around to allow Reid to double-check.

At first glance, things seemed to be right. Then Reid noticed something…

"Well, there it is!" Reid exclaimed. "The seventh and eighth numbers in the account number are transposed!"

"He's right," Chase conceded, checking the number on the screen with the one on the half-written check in her hand. Then she looked at the account number for the deposit to be dropped into.

"You have a thief in your office, Jake," she said simply.

"How…?"

"I did your books, just like I did the books down in Campbell," Chase said. "_That_ is definitely _not_ your business account number."

Mr. Collins looked at the number. It looked right…

"Someone transposed the third and fourth numbers. I can have Kyle run that account, but I'm telling you, you're _not_ getting _a lot_ of money."

"I'll do one better," Reid said. He pulled out his phone and made a call.

"Office of all knowledge and wisdom, Penelope Garcia speaking. How may I amaze you this fine afternoon?"

"Garcia? It's Reid."

"Of course. Recognize that voice anywhere. What can I do for you?"

"I need you to track an account number…"

"Go."

Reid read the account number from the screen.

"Just a second…ah, here it is," the tech replied. "Yeah, it looks like this Rita Fairlane isn't _quite_ as fair as she looks—she's wanted in Maryland for embezzlement, and did three years for computer fraud but plead out," Garcia said.

"How much did she take, Garcia?"

"About 700,000 dollars."

Reid's eyes grew at that. He thanked the tech, and thanked God today was a slow one at the office. Turning to Chase and Mr. Collins, he told them what Garcia had learned.

"Looks like old Rita out there lied on her application," Chase said.

"My God," Mr. Collins said, aghast. "Of course, she's fired."

"I would expect nothing less, Jake. But, ah, about Dr. Reid's account?"

"Oh, yes, of course. Dear God, if you hadn't told me about this…I'll cover the discrepancy myself, doctor. Can you come back in about a month, and I'll see to your account myself?"

Reid agreed, and then turned to Chase, who made a point of paying her bill in cash to Mr. Collins personally.

"See how easy that was?" Chase said, walking up to the receptionist's desk. "Now, you'll have to come with us…"

"What? You can't…"

"Oh, don't even go there," Chase said. She pulled out her credentials, which were unlike any Reid had seen. "Come on, we've got a special on a free trip to county lockup…"

Reid shook his head, but knew that he'd definitely have a story to tell once he got back to the office…


End file.
